Roy Moore wins Alabama primary runoff

In any other primary, having 5 times the spend as your opponent should be enough to sail through to victory. Add on top of that the endorsement of the Senate Majority Leader, NRA, Right to Life, and the President of the United States and this is a no-brainer. Include the advantage of (technically) being an incumbent and one would have to be an idiot to bet against you.

That’s the situation that Luther Strange finds himself in, but Alabama dared to bet… and vote… against him. Roy Moore, the controversial former Chief Justice and constitutional originalist has defeated Strange in the Alabama primary runoff.

This wasn’t your run-of-the-mill primary runoff. As noted before, this race had national implications. Now, Moore will go on to face Democrat Doug Jones, a former U.S. attorney in Alabama.

Perspectives

Moore Wins Alabama GOP Senate Primary | The Daily Caller

“They’re going to say, ‘Donald Trump, the President of the United States, was unable to pull his candidate across the line. It is a terrible, terrible moment for Trump,’” the president said while imitating news anchors at a Friday rally in Alabama in support of Strange.

Moore wins Republican Senate primary, dealing blow to GOP establishment – The Washington Post

Moore is now the front-runner to win the seat in a Dec. 12 general election. He will face Democratic candidate Doug Jones, a former U.S. attorney in Alabama.

BREAKING: MOORE WINS ALABAMA PRIMARY

Strange’s loss is a big loss for Mitch McConnell, who backed him heavily, and it is also a loss for Donald Trump, who went all in for Strange in the weeks leading up tonight.

BREAKING: Roy Moore Wins Alabama Senate Primary Run-Off | The Resurgent

Moore and Strange were the two top vote getters in the initial primary election back on August 15.  Since neither got over 50%, they went to a run-off.  The GOP establishment went all-in for Strange, pouring millions into the race on his behalf.  Mitch McConnell, Karl Rove, and other liberal Republicans slandered Moore with millions of dollars in false attacks.  Donald Trump even endorsed Luther Strange and campaigned for him.  Despite all this, Roy Moore consistently led in polling throughout the run-off campaign, so tonight’s result is not a surprise.

Reactions

Mitch McConnell rn pic.twitter.com/JQuJfBjtk8

— Aaron Bandler (@bandlersbanter) September 27, 2017

It is clear in the first five mins after the AP called it for Moore that the media fundamentally doesn't understand what just happened.

— Chris Pandolfo (@ChrisCPandolfo) September 27, 2017

Prepare for Breitbart + Bannon to take credit for this… https://t.co/JGooSzmukb

— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) September 27, 2017

#ALSEN hot takes:
👍$ isn't everything
👍Trump-endorsement can't save the swamp
👍Constitutionalists can win
All good for the #FederalistParty.

— JD Rucker (@JDRucker) September 27, 2017

#FakeNews https://t.co/KDteqNZ4Y4

— Steve Deace (@SteveDeaceShow) September 27, 2017

Congratulations to @mooresenate for a hard-fought victory in tonight's runoff. It was a testament to the power of conservative grassroots.

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) September 27, 2017

Final Thoughts

The left will try to pin this on President Trump as a major blow to his power within the GOP and they won’t be entirely wrong. Here’s the reality: he endorsed the guy who was loyal to him and probably didn’t give any other factors much thought. He heard “incumbent” and “big money from McConnell’s superPAC” and thought, why not? In business, holding loyalty as more valuable than ideology can work. In politics, that’s not always the case. It’s actually a good thing for Trump long-term that his swampy endorsement failed.